There are a bunch of really smart people on Steemit, so I have a question for you.
I took this photo at Oraki Korako. This is the ooze coming from volcanic thermal vents.
On it you can see a bunch of sandflies. They are obviously feeding on something since they had no interest in biting me or my wife. and sandflies usually LOVE us.
So my question is - what are they feeding on?
Is it the minerals, or something in the water?
Also bear in mind that the temperature of the surface here is scalding hot. If I put my hand on it I'd lose the skin in seconds.
It was such a weird thing to see, so if anyone has a clue I'd be interested to hear your theories.
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Never have seen anything like that
Hi, Trevor,
A little googling turned up this article which suggests to me that perhaps they are feasting on microorganisms that convert the vent effluent into food?
"The Microbes That Keep Hydrothermal Vents Pumping"
I think reading and thinking about that article may give you some answers to your question... ;)
😄😇😄
wow! that could be it. It seems such a weird thing for them to do. Sandflies usually suck blood from poor hapless humans with no socks. I'd never thought they would be eating microorganisms.
Thanks for that ;-)
I think they are feeding on juice from tree's droplets inside the water.
That's WEIRD. I have no answer but will be staying tuned to see.
Very cool. Can't wait to hear what you discover. Thanks for sharing! Upvoted.
@trevor.george ! It's really scary and weird thing .. I saw it for the first time by the way...
The answer will be very interesting.
And it was. Check @creatr above. I think he's onto something.
Sounds good
woke up this morning & the first thing I saw was a tiny critter on the ceiling. he moved a bit, but he was mostly just hanging upside-down. or was he? perhaps nobody told him about gravity, just as these flies hadn't been warned about a burning stove.
Yeah, I think gravity is a bit selective about who it affects at times.
Of course sometimes it realizes that it should be affecting a critter on the ceiling and throws a chunk at it just when it is above your face....
Wetas are really heavy when they land on your face in the dark! ;-)